Nokia 9: Cheaper in India than US and Europe

We are now back with another extensive post on upcoming Nokia phones and this time we are focusing on Nokia 9, which is going to be released in third quarter of 2017. However the big news is Nokia 9 is tipped to Rs. 44,999 and is cheaper than US and Europe where it’s priced at $699 and EUR 749. Many of the mobile phone brands had already planned to release their much awaited smartphones in 2017 so as to participate in the flagship smartphone wars. While Samsung is baiting upon its border-breaking S8; Huawei will be releasing Leica-powered P10; LG will be releasing its G6 and its much hyped “FullVision” display and Nokia has lined up a couple of Android phones that are slated to be released in 2017.

Nokia, which is now run by HMD Global, had created a stir in the telecom industry when it announced its histrionic comeback last year. The Finland-based iconic mobile phone brand has now returned with an array of Nokia Android phones to ensure that it regains its lost reputation and once again claim the “most trusted” brand tag that had defined it earlier when it ruled the phone market especially in India.

Nokia 9 competes with Samsung S8 and iPhone 8

Nokia 9 is one such attempt to revive their lost glory which is also Nokia’s trump card. HMD had recently announced that it is now working with Google to ensure that the Android functionality on Nokia phones is clean and similar to what Google offered on Nexus phones. Nokia Android phones like Nokia 9 are sufficiently equipped with latest technology and features to give the Samsung Galaxy S8 a run for its money with its avant garde design to combat the South Korean tech company’s latest release. This top-end Nokia Android smartphone is also geared up to compete with iPhone 8 this year apart from the Galaxy S8.

Samsung is also all set to compete Nokia 9. So it has added more innovation by integrating Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8+ with a new and unique 18:5:9 aspect ratio and the company calls it ‘Infinity Display‘.

On the onset of 2017, Nokia had announced its first Android phone – Nokia 6 at the CES 2017 event, later followed by Nokia 3, Nokia 5 and much refreshed version of the Nokia 3310 in MWC 2017. The smartphones are reportedly going to hit the global market by the end April or early May. HMD Global has not revealed the exact release date of Nokia 9, however Nokia seems to be already prepping up for the launch.

The Verdict

Apple iPhone 8 offers a compelling experience while not all of Samsung Galaxy S8 and S8 Plus features are vital to the daily usage needs of all users. Clearly, Nokia 9 is as almost as premium as the two but offers great quality and performance at a lesser price.

Partnering with Google

Nokia partnered with Google to release Android phones like Nokia 9, so that it could include a few features like stock Android, fast updates etc. from the then popular Nexus device in its upcoming Nokia Android smartphones. If sources are to be believed, Nokia 3, Nokia 5 and Nokia 3310 are also equipped with several Google features. They are going to be packed with best of the Android Operating System.

On partnering with Google, Per Ekman, vice president of HMD Global, Middle East and North Africa had this to say,

“We and Google will jointly enhance the Nokia brand to put the right kind of inputs into the phone, including Google Assistant. Vendors are adding a skin on top of the OS. Consumers have the right to have the latest version of the OS, and we will be pushing the latest version and the patches as soon as it is available from Google.”

As per the internal sources, Nokia 9 might be priced at Rs. 44,999 in India and that it would be cheaper in India that the US or Europe, where it is tipped to cost $699 and EUR 749 respectively. Further, the device is expected to be available sometime in the latter half of Q3 this year. This could be due to the availability issues with the Snapdragon 835 platform.

Nokia’s other smartphones, the Nokia 3, 5, and 6 are going to be launched in 120 markets sometime around second quarter this year. The company’s new feature phone, the Nokia 3310 or the brick phone, is tipped to be available in India before its smartphones.

Rumored Nokia 9 Design

Nokia 9 is said to run Android 7.1.1 Nougat. The device scores 1815 and 6278 in single-core and multi-core performance test respectively.

As per information shared by Nokia Power User, sketches of the Nokia 9 hint that the device will ditch as much bezels as Samsung did to create the Samsung Galaxy S8. As per the sketch, the design features no finger-print sensor in front. So, it’s still a speculation if HMD is planning to get finger print sensor behind the display on Nokia 9 or going to place one at the back below the camera and flash. One earlier rumor claimed that Nokia 9 will be featuring one extra lens/scanner other than FFC in this design sketch.

A 30-second video was accidentally posted by company’s photographer on Vimeo and was taken down after a short while. However, tipster Evan Blass managed to get hold of it and put out a screenshot from the video, on Twitter. The screenshot reveals four designs, two of which are Nokia 3 and 5. The other two Nokia Android phones (on the left) are new and haven’t been launched by HMD Global yet. If reports are anything to be believed, the smartphone with dual rear camera setup is company’s upcoming flagship – Nokia 9.

Both sketches have Dual-Lens camera on the back and one of them features a finger-print sensor in the front. However, these sketch designs may not be 100% authentic. Nokia 9 has borrowed its look and feel from its predessor Nokia 8. The only difference is the fingerprint scanner is shifted to the back to make room for even larger display. It is now located below the dual camera module and LED flash. The display in Nokia 9 seems to have adopted the pattern of what a 2017 flagship should be.

NOKIA 9 SPECIFICATIONS

Specifications of Nokia 9 are certainly flagship-level. While much is being discussed and shared across the web, the YouTube channel, “Concept creator,” has its own rendition of the device in a video that has received more than 1.5 million views.

The amount of views along with the steady stream of leaks make us realize what a modern-day flagship Nokia can deliver.

GENERAL

Operating System Device type
Sim

Android OS, v7.1 (Nougat) Smartphone Single Sim (Nano)

ANNOUNCED

Status

Global Release Date 2017

Indian Release Date

Rumored

Rumored

Rumored

DISPLAY

Screen size

Form Factor

Screen Resolution

Touchscreen

Technology(Display Type)

5.5 inches

Touch

1440 x 2560 pixels

Captive Touchscreen

OLED

PROCESSOR

CPU

GPU

Chipset

Octa core (2.45 GHz, Quad core, Kryo+1.9 GHz, Quad core, Kryo)

Adreno 540

Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 MSM8998

STORAGE

Internal Storage

RAM

External Storage

Card Slot

Phonebook

Messaging

Call Records

64/128 GB Storage

6 GB RAM

Up to 256 GB

microSD Card

Unlimited

SMS, MMS, Email, Push Email, IM

Unlimited

CAMERA

Primary camera

Front Camera

Video Recording

Camera Features

21 MP + 21 MP Dual Lens Camera

12 MP Camera

Yes

Geo Tagging, HDR

MULTIMEDIA

Audio Player

Video Player

Games

FM Radio

Speakers

Audio Jack

MP3, WAV, eAAC+, FLAC player

MP4, H.264 player

Yes

Yes

Yes, Dual Speaker

3.5mm Audio Jack

BATTERY

Type

Non-removable Li-Ion 3800 mAh battery

CONNECTIVITY

GPRS

Edge

WLAN

Bluetooth

USB

GPS Facility

Browser

3G Speed

Yes

Yes

Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot v4.0, A2DP, LE

v3.1, Type-C reversible connector

with A-GPS, GLONASS

HTML5

HSPA, LTE

NETWORK SUPPORT

3G

2G

4G

HSDPA 850/900/1900/2100 MHz

GSM 850/900/1800/1900 MHz

VoLTE

OTHER FEATURES

SENSORS

Fingerprint Sensor, IRIS Scanner, Waterproof

These are only rumors for now. But with the continuing popularity of the Nokia brand, it’s not too far a reality for the former mobile king to re-enter the frontlines of the phone wars. And with its flagship Nokia 9, the brand has certainly made a huge comeback.